This invention relates to mine countermeasures. More particularly, this invention is to a system having untethered, unmanned underwater vehicles for identifying mine-like contacts in an area suspected as being mined as a surface ship proceeds through the area.
The process for hunting mines is considerably slow. Ships making the search normally proceed on the detection phase of the mission at speeds ranging from three to five knots. Next, the classification phase of the process can, on average, range from five to fifteen minutes per contact depending on the location of the contact, the time it takes to slow and maneuver the ship, and the time it takes for a sonar operator on the ship to make a decision regarding classification. For contacts classified as mine-like, the subsequent identification and neutralization phase can, on average, range anywhere from fifteen to thirty minutes per contact depending on the time it takes for reacquisition and whether or not the contact is a mine requiring neutralization. Other time and risk factors that may need to be added-in include the time for reacquisition between each phase of the operation and the probabilities of reacquisition.
These steps of the process for hunting mines are repeated again and again as the ships make contacts of other suspected mines across an area. The greatest consequence of this concatenated process is that an inordinate amount of time can elapse. This loss of time spent checking suspected contacts that were not in fact caused by the presence of real mines can waste a significant military opportunity, or detrimentally change a tactical scenario.
Thus, in accordance with this inventive concept, a need has been recognized in the state of the art for a system having untethered, unmanned underwater vehicles deployed from a ship while under way to positively identify mines from mine-like contacts in less time.
An object of the invention is to provide a system to reduce the time spent during countermeasures missions for hunting mines.
Another object of the invention is to provide a mine identification system quickly and directly identifying mines.
Another object is to provide a mine identification system using a ship under way through an area having mine-like contacts for quickly and directly identifying mines and other objects from mine-like contacts.
Another object of the invention is to provide a mine identification system using at least one untethered unmanned underwater vehicle sent from a ship to identify real mine contacts and avoid unnecessary use of mine neutralization devices.
Another object is to provide a mine identification system using at least one untethered, unmanned underwater vehicle deployed from a ship under way for identifying real and false mine contacts in less time.
Another object of the invention is to provide a system using at least one expendable, untethered, unmanned underwater vehicle sent from a ship to eliminate the time for classification and to directly identify contacts while the ship is still under way.
These and other objects of the invention will become more readily apparent from the ensuing specification when taken in conjunction with the appended claims.
Accordingly, the present invention is to a mine identification system having at least one untethered, unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) deployed from a surface ship to identify mines from many mine-like contacts in less time and avoid unnecessary use of mine neutralization devices. The surface ship has a command console and display screen, and the UUV has a video camera and high-resolution sonar providing high-resolution images for the screen, a transducer/transceiver for projecting acoustic signals representative of the high-resolution signals through water and for receiving acoustic control signals from the command console. A search-sonar and acoustic transducer are connected to the ship, command console, and display screen. The search sonar projects acoustic signals and receives portions of the projected acoustic signals that are reflected from the mine-like contacts and the UUV. The screen displays low resolution images of mine-like contacts and UUV from the reflected portions, and the acoustic transducer transmits the acoustic control signals from the command console through the water to the transducer/transceiver for quickly vectoring UUV to the vicinity of the mine-like contacts to enable identification of mines from the high-resolution images.